1. Field
The present disclosure relates to an electrochemical battery and a method of operating the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Of electrochemical batteries, a metal air battery and a fuel battery have a common feature in that air including oxygen is supplied to a cathode. For example, a metal air battery includes a plurality of metal air cells, and each of the metal air cells includes an anode that adsorbs and emits ions and a cathode that uses oxygen in air as an active material. A reduction/oxidation reaction of oxygen introduced from the outside occurs at the cathode, and an oxidation/reduction reaction of a metal occurs at the anode. The metal air battery changes chemical energy generated by the oxidation/reduction reaction into electrical energy and outputs the electrical energy. For example, the metal air battery absorbs oxygen during discharging and emits oxygen during charging.
In addition, the fuel battery is a device that directly converts chemical energy of a fuel into electrical energy by an electrochemical reaction and is a type of a power generation device that is capable of continuously generating electricity as long as a fuel is supplied thereto. In the fuel battery, when air including oxygen is supplied to a cathode and a fuel such as methanol or hydrogen is supplied to an anode, an electrochemical reaction occurs through an electrolyte membrane between the cathode and the anode, thereby generating electricity.